One said she had been drinking and had been "having rows" with her partner "all day".

He added: "When the police came on to the ship - before letting us get off - they were going around asking after which staff members were serving us alcohol. I think they wanted to know who had been serving her.

"Her (partner) was looking for her for hours before the alarm was raised that she'd gone overboard."

A second person said Ms Longstaff and her partner "were arguing", adding: "This is what (the) concierge told us willingly."

A third added: "My wife and I had a cabin just above hers at the back.

"When the incident was reported by the Captain, he said that an area in the middle of deck seven had been sealed off.

"When getting off the boat, seven hours late, a number of passengers were saying there had been a midnight dispute among the Longstaff party."

A crew member from the Norwegian Star ship, Daniel Punch, today also wrote on Facebook that the 46-year-old had "jumped" and had been "arguing with her fella the whole time," the Daily Mail reported.